“When F1 meets the NBA”– F1 partners up with NBA; Drivers will have free-throw battle and will be coached by Basketball legends

F1 and the NBA are collaborating for a content partnership to celebrate the US Grand Prix and the 75th Anniversary of the NBA.

Thursday, 21st October, will see teams battle it out off the track in a free-throw competition at the Circuit Of The Americas. Legends from the NBA will also be present at the ESPN Studio. They will coach the drivers in the bid to sink in as many free throws as possible out of 10.

The winners will be rewarded a cash prize of $20,000, which they will then donate to a charity of their choosing. Apart from this, F1 in collaboration with the NBA, will be releasing special edition liveries of all 30 NBA teams on F1 cars worldwide social media platforms. The first 10 liveries have already been released.

The US GP at Circuit Of The Americas in Austin, Texas, is returning after two years. This was because the Grand Prix of 2020 in Texas was cancelled because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.  The now-iconic track has been part of the calendar since 2012. 

Also read: Daniel Ricciardo is getting his NASCAR drive at next week’s race in Austin

The last winner at the COTA was Mercedes’ Valterri Bottas. The year before saw Kimi Raikönnen winning his first race since his days at Lotus F1 team.

Austin isn’t Mercedes’ first rodeo

Lewis Hamilton has dominated this track for the majority of the races held here since 2012, having won 6 of them. Coming off a win in Turkey,  Mercedes will be feeling confident going into this race weekend.

The newfound straight-line speed with the upgraded ICE’s will give Mercedes and Lewis Hamilton the edge they need to take back the lead in the Driver’s championship.

Also read: Red Bull boss Helmut Marko suggests conspiracy behind Mercedes’ sudden gain of pace since Silverstone

The entire weekend in Turkey, Mercedes looked unbeatable on the straights, and Red Bull seemed as if they were struggling. Here at Austin, the long straights might be detrimental to Max Verstappen’s six-point lead in the Driver’s standings. 

A ray of hope for Red Bull is back in the pit wall

All hope is not lost for the Milton-Keynes-based outfit. Adrian Newey, the Red Bull’s car designer, is now back in the pit wall after a severe bike crash left him injured for months and caused him to miss multiple races.

The figurehead designer has already identified all the issues with the setup of the car in Turkey, which made it struggle. Red Bull hope that Newey’s expertise can come in handy in Texas as well this Sunday.